'Challenger' credit bureau Infact lands £4m seed funding boost

A new credit referencing agency set up to provide real-time data to lenders has landed millions of pounds from investors to fund its expansion.

Sky News understands that Infact, which recently secured authorisation from the City watchdog, will this week announce a £4m fundraising.

Infact enables the sharing of consumer credit information in real-time, which it says enables lenders' credit risk teams to make more effective lending decisions.

The company argues that this technology-led approach will promote financial inclusion by allowing consumers to rebuild their credit profiles more quickly.

The funding round is being led by AlbionVC, with prominent investors including Portfolio Ventures, Outward VC and Form Ventures also participating.

Will Mason, co-founder and chief executive of Infact, said: "Legacy bureaus have done a bad job innovating in their core business and have instead chosen to innovate around the edges.

"We are excited to build a challenger bureau that supports today's lenders by treating their consumers as people with rich and varied financial lives."

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A number of leading angel investors in the credit referencing, lending, and fintech space, are also backing Infact's fundraising.

Mr Mason and co-founder Andy Milligan, who previously worked for Runpath - later acquired by FTSE-100 credit referencing giant Experian - have recruited a senior team with experience at companies including NatWest, Ratesetter and Visa.

The company declined to identify its initial batch of clients, which it said were aiding the launch of its first product, Affordability Engine.